The Auster 6A Tugmaster was a British high-wing
monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...
glider tug
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is al ...
converted from surplus former military
Auster AOP.6
The Auster AOP.6 was a British military air observation aircraft produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the numerous wartime Taylorcraft Auster aircraft then in-service.
History
The Auster AOP.6 (Auster Model K) was designed as a succe ...
s.
Development
The Auster Tugmaster is a high-wing braced monoplane with a fixed
tailwheel landing gear
Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms ...
and powered by a
de Havilland Gipsy Major
The de Havilland Gipsy Major or Gipsy IIIA is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted inline engine used in a variety of light aircraft produced in the 1930s, including the famous Tiger Moth biplane. Many Gipsy Major engines still power vintag ...
engine.
The Tugmasters had their engines modified to civilian standards as the Gipsy Major 10 and they were also fitted with larger tail surfaces.
Because of the original radio fit had been removed the second passenger sat in a sideways-facing seat behind the pilot and not side-by-side although three aircraft were fitted with dual controls and side-by-side seating.
When the
Auster AOP.9
The Auster AOP.9 was a British military air observation aircraft ("Air Observation Post") produced by Auster Aircraft Limited to replace the Auster AOP.6.
Design and development
The Auster AOP.9 was designed as a successor to the Auster AOP.6. ...
was introduced into
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
service from 1959,
Auster Aircraft
Auster Aircraft Limited was a British aircraft manufacturer from 1938 to 1961.Willis, issue 122, p.55
History
The company began in 1938 at the Britannia Works, Thurmaston near Leicester, England, as Taylorcraft Aeroplanes (England) Limited, m ...
bought 104 surviving and now surplus
Auster AOP.6 and T.7s.
Initially 29 airframes
were modified for glider towing as the Auster 6A Tugmaster.
[Ellison, 1966, pp. 73–75.] Each individual aircraft was stripped as necessary and re-built with minimum cost in a maximum of 400 manhours, with a selling price of £995. Subsequently, about 50 were converted as three-seater touring aircraft for civilian use as the
Auster 6B, later designated as the
Beagle A.61 Terrier.
The first conversion,
test registration ''G-25-9'', flew on 5 July 1960
and was produced by Air Tows Ltd at Lasham
[Ellison, 1966, p. 74] and was fitted with an electrically-driven winch; five more were modified by Air Tows.
Twenty one were converted by Auster at Rearsby with a conventional Auster-designed towing hook.
Other conversions were carried out by a number of organisations including one by
British European Airways
British European Airways (BEA), formally British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974.
BEA operated to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East from airports around the United Kingdom. The a ...
employees at
London Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the Airports of London, London airport sys ...
for their own gliding club at Booker. Some surplus Royal Canadian Air Force Auster AOP.6 aircraft were also converted in Canada for glider towing.
Examples of the Tugmaster were exported to Finland, Norway and Sweden.
Several Tugmasters remain in service with UK gliding clubs (2014).
Specifications
See also
References
;Notes
;Bibliography
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{{Auster aircraft
1960s British civil utility aircraft
Glider tugs
Tugmaster
Single-engined tractor aircraft
High-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1960